Have you thrown away your Bible?

[white_raven23]

One thing I'm torn about.

 

I have some of the "Left Behind" book series. I have the first book thru "Assassins". I don't own, nor have I read the rest.

 

I'm tossing around the idea of giving what I have to a used book store. But should I bother in any way with the rest of the series now that the sucker is finally finished?

 

From just a fictional standpoint, has anyone else here read the entire series? Is the rest of the depiction of Revelations worth bothering with? I'm kinda leaning towards seeing if I can find these at the library.

 

But at the same time, the survival situation kind of appeals to me. I still can't decide. Keep the books and just be entertained by the fiction? I've always been a bit of an armchair armaggedon-ist, and I enjoy end-of-the-world fiction.

 

Are the rest of these worth any time at all?

[RankStranger]

I never finished the series.  I think I have three left to go.  I did read the part where jesus comes back in the last book (toward the end), one night in Barnes and Noble.  It is a trip, with bodies of the "bad guys" exploding.  And the part where Jesus throws the anti-christ and the false prophet into hell was pretty freaky too.

 

My main problem with the series, as I read it as a Christian, was that I felt the writing was kind of amateurish and poor.  I can not stand to read a book, and see a word like "said" repeated every other sentence.

 

Jesus came back in a Barnes & Noble?? That's kindof anticlimactic. I thought he was supposed to split the eastern sky or something.

 

My dad got me the only bible I've owned as some sort of sick graduation gift. It's in a landfill in Tennessee now.

[necrosmith]

Still have a bible around for reference, but I sold off all other Christian books on eBay.

[Guest Loki]

No, I haven't throw anyway any Christian books I had. I've thought about it though. Instead I put them out in the garage so I don't have to look at them. It's just too much money just to throw away.

[shakinshoog]

the best one i had that was a graduation present, i accidentally left at a church and never saw it again.

 

i have a cheap one we found the other day that was packed away. teal color. but when i look stuff up to use on a particular forum i use bible.com as a reference point . just their search option, passing over the hoopla and junk.

 

[Amethyst]

There must be a charity or two somewhere that takes these books, and doesn't charge for shipping. Anyone have any ideas?

[Dark Helmet]

I didn't throw my bible to the garbage, rather I gave it to my sister who wanted one anyways and since she doesn't have a job I thought I'd saver her the money. The other christian books weren't as lucky. The Purpose Driven Life tasted my wrath but it got picked out of my garbage can by my mom along with some other bullshit doctrinal book our youth pastor used at some point. I didn't own much books but it was more of a formality to throw them away since they were gathering dust for the past year and a half. I got rid of most of my christian music on my computer, gotta sell the cds (hey I got about 800$ worth of music on my shelves), I'll keep Michael W. Smith's Freedom though, great instrumental! For the rest, buh-bye. I can't listen to it without remembering how foolish I was in those days. Can anyone say baaaahh? At least I'm wisening up.

 

It feels good to separate myself from that stuff. It's just like a breakup, I burned my pics of my ex (not out of anger but because it kept nagging at me).

[Guest SkizzikS]

I sold all my books but I still have my bibles. They mostly collect dust or they are proping up something.

[imageownershipproblem]

Not me.

 

I just tossed Apologia General Science in the garbage and doused it with old coffee grounds and kitty litter.

 

Since nobody here knows or cares what Apologia General Science is, I owe at least a minimal explanation of the fact that it is a very expensive ($60 used last Fall) and highly critically acclaimed "Creationist" High School textbook. The publishers and marketers were peripherally involved in an antitrust suit in 1997 that nobody here but me and Alice and possibly Thankful care about, but suffice it to say that a single mother of nine children had her business and her life effectively ruined, although she ultimately won the suit. To the best of my knowledge, no charges were ever filed concerning the threats made on her life.

 

Anywho, the reason it took me so long is because that text has some sentimental value, as it was instrumental in my own deconversion because I have an amazingly intelligent and compassionate child.

 

I could feed that kid for a week on what some eejut would give me for the book, but I couldn't live with myself for foisting that kind of garbage on what would undoubtedly be a far weaker child and contributing to the fundinquincy of a minor.

 

Besides, it feels good.

 

 

This is probably my 20th attempt at a rational post since yesterday and I think I can do it.

 

I'm also going through some "stuff" in an ongoing and extremely complicated relationship of five years.

 

As I type this, I have five years worth of xtian books that were gifts of love from the only man I have ever or will ever love over the course of five years collected and placed in bags; there isn't room in my trash can. After I click on "post", I'm going to drive to the dump and put them in the recycle bin.

 

If I don't do it now, it's proof that I don't love the only man who has ever or could ever love me.

[spidermonkey]

When I first ditched xtianity, I threw my old study buybull around the room for stress relief. I had no other coping skills other than praying and "giving it to ghod" so I did that fairly often. I eventually destroyed it and had to throw it away.

 

My dad occasionally gives me fundie books of different flavors. I save them until I get so frustrated that I need to break/rip/damage something. Then I go for those books

[Christopher Carrion]

Why would I want to throw the bible away? it's what keeps me atheist!

 

In all seriousness, whether the bible has been a source of incredible suffering and misery or not, it is still an enomrously important work, if only as a study of basic human psychological manipulation. It is also a source of enormous inspiration for any aspiring writer, especially those of us with a markedly anti-Christian bent.

 

As for works of apologism, I only ever purchased one once, and that was by accident. I tore it to pieces on the bus-ride home, much to the astonishment of my fellow passengers.

[dulce]

I have some of the "Left Behind" book series. I have the first book thru "Assassins". I don't own, nor have I read the rest.

 

UUGGGHHHH!!

That reminded me of last Xmas. I bought my daughter the first book of Left Behind, The Kids. And I bought her a bible with her name engraved on it. Oh I was such a good Xtian mom! I could just puke.

 

As for my bibles, I haven't thrown any away, yet. Maybe keep one for reference material.

[spamandham]

I still have my first Bible. It has sentimental value even though I no longer consider it more than a book. I have other books I've kept for sentimental value as well, even though I'll probably never read them again.

 

But my enourmous collection of apologetic books, etc. I donated to charity. Why toss a perfectly good book even if I think it's crap?

 

I still get apologetic books. Everyone sends them to me. I read one or two here and there, but the others collect on my bookshelf until it's time for another charity run.

 

I recently read one that was given to me called "90 Minutes in Heaven" by Don Piper. It's an emotional story no doubt, but not very compelling regarding the "90 minutes in heaven" part. His time in heaven sounds a lot like an amalgum of dreams, easily brought about by the stress his brain was going through as he clinged, just barely and unnoticably by others, to life.

[Metroplex]

I actually got rid of my bibles, gave them to a charity shop.

My parent's bibles, I couldn't get rid of them, even though I wanted to!

Better off without such a book, I think.

[Jose]

I burned all mine at a Harry Potter bonfire at the local Pente church.

[Ex-COG]

I still have several different translations; I also kept reference books such as Bible dictionary, Strongs Concordance, etc. But I've ditched most of my other books that would be considered Christian, whether based on fact or fiction (whoops...did I use the word "fact" in connection with Christian publications? Sorry, my bad.) Mostly just kept what could be used in reference or that presents Christianity from a different view than my former evangelicalism. Had enough of that crap. I've replaced the evangelical stuff with books on science, critical thinking, etc. Heh heh. Gotta catch up on a badly neglected area for me.

[JeffXL]

I've kept my various mistranslations of the BuyBull, as well as the other bullshit sacred/venerated lies of the other religions (Book of Mor[m]on, Qu'ran, Upanishads, Bhagavadgita, ad nauseum). I collected 'em all!

 

 

I keep them so that when an Xtian tries to lie to me, I jes' pull out the Bible and show him or her the relevant passages he/she is lying about. And it's great fun.

 

Religionists are always surprised when I can quote their scriptures. Especially missionaries. I can see the rolodex spinning in their heads for what they're supposed to say next.

 

Know Your Enemy!

[greygirl]

One thing I'm torn about.

 

I have some of the "Left Behind" book series. I have the first book thru "Assassins". I don't own, nor have I read the rest.

 

I'm tossing around the idea of giving what I have to a used book store. But should I bother in any way with the rest of the series now that the sucker is finally finished?

 

From just a fictional standpoint, has anyone else here read the entire series? Is the rest of the depiction of Revelations worth bothering with? I'm kinda leaning towards seeing if I can find these at the library.

 

But at the same time, the survival situation kind of appeals to me. I still can't decide. Keep the books and just be entertained by the fiction? I've always been a bit of an armchair armaggedon-ist, and I enjoy end-of-the-world fiction.

 

Are the rest of these worth any time at all?

31049[/snapback]

 

I've read the whole series except the last one. I keep thinking I should go down to the library and get it.

 

I don't know that I'd say they're good. I read them for entertainment (some of that stuff is hilarious, even though it's not meant to be), and because it's like a train wreck. So terrible you just can't bring yourself to look away.

[greygirl]

Just the opposite. I've actually started collecting them since I quit being a Xian.

 

I still have my quad that was my baptism present when I was eight (for those who know little or nothing of Mormonism, a quad is the KJV bible, Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants and Pearl of Great Price all bound in one really thick volume) that has my name engraved on it.

 

For several years, I took the Gideon Bible out of every hotel room I stayed in (the one from Vegas has a gold cover XD) until I realized that I was going to quickly fill up a lot of shelf space with identical books. I've got four of them now. I also tend to haunt Deseret Industries (Mormon thrift store) looking for old Mormon books. I've got Fascinating Womanhood, Self Esteem and the Latter Day Saint Woman, And They Shall Be One Flesh, stuff like that. When you read them with a critical eye, they're either enfuriating or hilarious, but I like having them around for when the missionaries show up and try to tell me that the Relief Society is a great feminist organization.

[Guest Warlock]

I had a huge collection of christian books and would find myself looking at them when bored or upset. Old habits. So I threw everything bible related out and started a new collection of books centered around philosophy, paganism, and eastern mysticism. I wouldn't even allow myself to look at a bible for the next five years and would feel ill at the thought. I can now look at the bible for short times if involved in a religious debate.

[Gnosis of Disbelief]

I did when I first deconverted, in a fit of rage against a gawd

that I perceived to be unjust and cruel. I took everything out

to a used book store - bibles, a Strong's concordance, a variety

of apologetics material - and sold it all off. I didn't look at any

christian stuff for the next 17 or 18 years, as I gradually moved

into agnosticism and then finally full-blown atheism. Now that

I'm on the other side of the fence, I realized that I needed to

reacquaint myself with the enemy, so to speak, so I recently

picked up a bible as reference. It now joins a growing collection

of books on Egyptian and Mesopatamian mythology, Buddhism,

Taoism, atheism, and philosophy.

 

Edited to add: Wow, I noticed a lot of newbies on this thread!

Greetings to you all!

[Guest JP]

About a year and a half ago, I thought I had been led by God to buy the book "The Purpose-Driven Life" by Rick Warren. I really thought I was meant to have this book, as I felt God directed me right to it in the bookstore. Then, I was on day 3 or 4 of the book (you read one chapter a day) and I realized while I was at Wal-Mart that I hadn't read my chapter for the day, so I found the book on a sales rack up front. As I was reading the chapter for the day, a couple employees came up to me telling me how good that book was and that the Bible was the TRUTH! Right then I knew that God had led me to this wondrous, magical book.

 

So I got about halfway through it when it started talking about some weird shit that I didn't agree with. So I put it down. A few months later I picked it back up because I wondered if God was using my troubles as a way to "bring me back to him." So I decided to open up the book again, and I turned right to the chapter called "Transformed by Trouble." Once again, I thought God had led me back to the Book of Magical Wonders by Rick Warren. But once again, I put it down.

 

I tried to get rid of it a few times, but I always felt guilty, so I kept it. But when I moved out of my old apartment a month ago, I decided enough was enough and finally ditched it. So my copy of "How to Get Slaved" is now buried in a dump somewhere.

[Lycorth]

I tossed most of my stuff. I do want to keep one Babble™ on hand, to help educate my children about the evils of Xianity someday, before they make their own religious choices.

 

I do have another one, a NSV I think, that I will probably burn. I have an ancient Catholick Babble™ to hang on to for teaching purposes. Fire is such a nice way to dispose of things. Perhaps I'll make a ritual out of it - sacrifice a Babble™ to the Gods

 

I'll take pics, too

[Rhia]

I got rid of everything except my bible, and that was only because I needed it for a class. Now that I've passed the class, I see no problem with trashing it. (It's in bad condition anyway. I deconverted from a church that believed that the more crappy your bible looked [i.e. papers everywhere inside, notes in the margins, smudged ink, etc] signified your "relationship with god", so mine was pretty bad looking to begin with from putting huge bookmarks in to make it look like I was still a "good xn" whilst deconverting.)

 

My mom WILL throw a fit. She knows I'm an atheist, and she knows I still have that bible. Trashing/burning that damned thing will truly solidify everything, at least in her mind.

 

As for my other xn books (of which I had a ton) I took most of them and put them in a huge box, then let my mom take it to her church. The rest, I gave to a friend who likes reading Lori Wick. (I still cringe today knowing I even TRIED to read those!)

[Taphophilia]

Last week a new neighbor was over and I saw a book under the porch. "Why is a book under the porch?" So, I went to get it and it was a New Testament my son was given when he went to a youth group with his friends a while ago. "Eeeww, a Bible!" So, without thinking, I took it over to the trash can and threw it in and then sat down beside my new neighbor at the patio table.

I then realised what I had done and waited for the reaction of my new neighbor. They were laughing, and then said to me, (as far a Christianity) "Been there done that, don't want anything to do with it either."